Extortion and gang violence are hitting even big corporations and business leaders in Mexico
Even Mexico's largest corporations are now being hit by demands for protection payments from drug cartels, and gangs are increasingly trying to control the sales, distribution and pricing of certain goods
CIUDAD VICTORIA, Mexico (AP) — Even Mexico’s largest corporations are now being hit by demands from drug cartels, and gangs are increasingly trying to control the sale, distribution and pricing of certain goods.
Well-known, high-ranking business leaders aren't even safe.
On Monday, the head of the business chambers' federation in Tamaulipas state, across the border from Texas, gave television interviews complaining about drug cartel extortion in the state. Hours later on Tuesday, Julio Almanza was shot to death outside his offices in the city of Matamoros, across from Brownsville, Texas.
“We are hostages to extortion demands, we are hostages of criminal groups,” Almanza said in one of his last interviews. “Charging extortion payments has practically become the national sport in Tamaulipas.”
